U.S. Navy responds to distress call in Aegean Sea

Story highlights

The ship sent a helicopter to Turkish-flagged container vessel

The helicopter lowered a swimmer, who recovered two Turkish mariners

The men were then transferred to Greece's Coast Guard

U.S. sailors from the USS Bataan, responding Saturday to a distress call from a Turkish-flagged container vessel that had run aground in the Aegean Sea and was listing, recovered two mariners, the Navy said in a news release.

After the call, at about 10:30 a.m., the multipurpose amphibious assault ship dispatched a helicopter to the site, where Greece's Hellenic Coast Guard had already arrived, the Navy said.

"Upon request for assistance, the aircraft lowered a rescue swimmer and recovered two Turkish mariners and returned to Bataan," it said.

After the two men underwent a medical evaluation aboard the ship, they were transferred to the Hellenic Coast Guard.

Bataan Amphibious Readiness Group is supporting maritime security operations, providing crisis response capability and theater security efforts in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operations.